


Home in your arms

by bookl0ver



Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: Angst, Ben Mitchell Loves Callum "Halfway" Highway, Don't copy to another site, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor Injuries, Minor Violence, Secret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:07:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28292103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bookl0ver/pseuds/bookl0ver
Summary: For the Ballum Secret Santa 2020Callum has a bad day at work - Ben helps.(Paramedic Callum)
Relationships: Callum "Halfway" Highway/Ben Mitchell
Comments: 10
Kudos: 37
Collections: Ballum Secret Santa 2020





	Home in your arms

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WhoreForFluff](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhoreForFluff/gifts).



> For bisexualballum/whoreforfluff - hope you enjoy. 
> 
> Warnings: Implied/brief, vague descriptions of violence, innuendo, crying, bruises. 
> 
> Enjoy!

It wasn't unusual for Callum to come home from work with tired eyes and slumped shoulders. Long hours as a paramedic brought with them exhaustion and the mental toll of all that he saw often had him collapsing onto the sofa, head resting instinctively in Ben’s lap. 

But today was different. 

Dinner was ready, kept warm in the oven and Ben was absently cleaning up their flat, humming along to the Christmas tunes on the radio when Callum stumbled through the door. 

"Hey babe..." 

His words trailed off as he took Callum in. His eyes were red rimmed and puffy, a bruise blossoming on his cheek and his bottom lip was bloody and split. Callum met his eyes and some of the tension drained from him as he threw himself into Ben's arms, clutching onto him tightly. 

Ben raised his hands to pull Callum impossibly closer, worry and anger thrumming through his veins as Callum’s breath shuddered against his neck. Cold tears landed on Ben's neck, wetting the skin and he began to move backwards, guiding Callum to the sofa. The pressure of the seat against the back of his knees had Callum's legs folding and his body falling, Ben dragged down on top of him. 

"It's okay Cal, I'm here," Ben murmured, hand carding through Callum’s hair in the soft, gentle way that made his boyfriend melt. They sat like that for a few minutes until Callum’s tears dried up and he pulled away slightly, sniffling. 

"You back with me babe?" Ben asked gently when Callum stayed silent. Watery blue eyes met his and Ben's heart broke. He never wanted to see Callum look so sad and tired. His boyfriend gave a brief nod and offered him a thin smile. 

"Yeah… sorry about…" Callum gestured to the wetness on Ben’s shirt. "...That." 

"Hey, don't be sorry baby," Ben cupped Callum’s cheek, brushing away the stray tears that were still falling. "You wanna talk about it?" 

Callum shook his head, staring down at Ben's chest rather than meeting his eyes. Before Ben could speak Callum’s stomach rumbled and his cheeks flushed deeper at Ben's amused chuckle. 

"Right you, at the table. I've got dinner ready, sounds like you need it." 

Callum offered him a soft smile and nodded, letting Ben pull him up from the sofa and guide him over to the table. His smile widened as Ben pulled a chair out for him with a flourish, offering a bow and tucking the chair under him. 

Dinner quickly dished up, Ben grabbed them both a can of beer and carried the lot in, not wanting to leave Callum alone for too long. He hated not knowing what was going on with Callum, and whilst it wasn't hard to guess, he still wanted to know exactly what had happened to send his smiley boyfriend so sad and somber. 

He paused in the kitchen door, soft at the sight in front of him. Callum, still exhausted with an air of sadness around him, was leaning on one hand and humming along to the music, tapping the tune. Ben's heart swelled. Even when he had clearly had an awful day, his nerves fraught and on edge, he could still sit there and enjoy the simple joys around him. 

God, Ben was a lucky man. 

"Get that down ya babe, you'll feel much better." 

"Thank you," Callum said quietly, looking up at Ben with love full eyes. Paitently he waited for Ben to sit down and get comfy before he decimated the meal in front of him. 

They ate in relative silence, bar the sounds of Callum shovelling food in as though it would disappear if he slowed to chew. Ben couldn't help but laugh, Callum was always starving after work. It was cute, watching him eat, listening to him make little noises of pleasure and appreciation as his empty stomach was satiated. 

When they were both done Callum made to take the dishes. Ben wasn't having that. He quickly gathered them all into his own hands. 

"You've had a long day baby." He said fondly, stretching up to kiss Callum’s cheek. "Sit down, I'll be with you in a second and you can tell me all about it, okay?" 

Callum nodded, that shy smile back on his face and warm flush colouring his cheeks. He still didn't really know how to deal with being looked after, it always felt wrong, like he should be doing more. One look at the firm set of Ben's jaw however had him obediently sitting down, his boyfriend wouldn't appreciate him trying to get involved. 

Slumping into the cushions he let his head flop back, heavy eyelids falling shut. Seconds or minutes passed and he snapped alert when Ben sank into the cushions, Callum’s body falling into his side. 

"Hey sleeping beauty," Ben teased, pulling Callum to rest more comfortably on his chest. Immediately Callum burrowed closer, breathing in Ben's scent and sighing in content. "You wanna tell me what happened today?" 

Callum hummed in response, delaying having to relive the day from hell for a few more moments. 

"It was going alright. Loads of calls, what with it being Christmas, falls on the ice, drunks passing out, shoppers smacking each other with baskets over the last Barbie." Ben chuckled, wrapping his arms around Callum’s stomach. "Then we had this one call. It wasn't anything awful, but as we got him in the ambulance he freaked out. Started.. started flailing around, trying to fight his way out. He…"

Ben could hear his voice thickening, a sniffle as he took in a breath and he slid a hand to tenderly brush his thumb over the bruise on Callum’s cheekbone. Callum leant into him, his voice calmer when he spoke. That was Ben's affect on him - made him feel so loved and safe. 

"He hit me, a couple of times before we managed to restrain him and get him sedated. And it wasn't bad, it didn't hurt but it…" 

"Scared you?" Ben finished gently. Anger burned in his chest, tamped down only by the knowledge that swearing revenge on this patient wouldn't do Callum any good. Callum nodded, ears turning red. "It's okay Callum, you don't need to be embarrassed, especially not with me. It sounds scary. And -" He shuffled Callum around so they were face to face. "Even if it didn't hurt, that don't mean it doesn't matter, okay?"

Callum nodded, shyly looking into Ben's eyes and finding waves of love that warmed him to his core. "Thank you, Ben." He mumbled, taking Ben's hand in his. Being here, with Ben, in the sanctuary of their home made him feel so content, burdens lifted just by the contact of his man's skin against his own. 

"You're very welcome babe," Ben replied, a wicked grin covering his face. Callum clocked it and felt a smile tugging at his own lips, wincing slightly at the split lip. He knew that face, knew it very well. 

"Why don't we get in the shower eh?" Ben crooned. "Let me look after my big brave man." 

Innuendo lathered the words but Callum couldn't deny it sounded nice. Being spoiled and looked after, after an awful day like this one. 

He rose quickly, dragging Ben roughly with him and laughing when he stumbled and crashed into his back whilst trying to stay upright. 

"Falling for me are you?" He winked, hurrying to the shower backwards so he could watch Ben chase him with _that_ look in his eyes. 

Within minutes all thoughts of Callum’s horrible day had faded, replaced by the sounds of the shower on full blast, masking the goings on in the bathroom, and the radio, still playing a merry little Christmas tune. 

**Author's Note:**

> 🎄🎁🎄🎁🎄🎁🎄
> 
> Thank you so much for reading, please let me know what you thought, comments and kudos are really appreciated. 
> 
> Have a very merry Christmas 
> 
> 🎄🎁🎄🎁🎄🎁🎄


End file.
